Jason Thacker was thinking, writing, and speaking about AI before it was cool - and long before the most recent “hype cycle.” His first book, The Age of AI: Artificial Intelligence and the Future of Humanity, tackled the theological, ethical, and anthropological dimensions of technology in general, and AI specifically. And as you will no doubt be able to tell from our conversation, he’s more than an expert or an ethicist - he is a teacher and a disciple who’s love for and hope in Jesus is only more magnified by the technological challenges of our liminal age.Jason is the assistant professor of philosophy and ethics at Boyce College and a research fellow in Christian ethics at The Ethics and Religious Liberty Commission. His work has been featured at Christianity Today, World Magazine, The Week, Slate, USA Today, Politico, The Gospel Coalition, and Desiring God. He is the author of several books, including Following Jesus in a Digital Age and The Digital Public Square. Was this episode helpful or encouraging in some way? Great! Then you won't want to miss what's next so SUBSCRIBE now and send this episode to a friend! We appreciate it! 🙏You can also leave a review (it really helps), or follow us on Twitter (X?), Facebook, & Instagram to join the conversation!RESOURCES(ARTICLE) Why the Christian Ethic isn't simply about rules

Peter Warren Singer is the Strategist and Senior Fellow at New America, a Professor of Practice at Arizona State University, and Founder & Managing Partner at Useful Fiction LLC. He previously was a Senior Fellow and Director of the Center for 21st Century Security and Intelligence at the Brookings Institution, and was named by the Wall Street Journal as “the premier futurist in the national-security environment." While that's quite the real-world résumé, we wanted to talk to him about science fiction... Specifically, Burn-In: The Real Robotic Revolution, the near-future science fiction novel he coathored with August Cole to stretch the imaginations of National Security, Intelligence, and State Department professionals needing better conceptual handholds for grasping AI's potential to reshape... well... all of human society. Oh, and did we mention he's also an actual, real-life "Mad Scientist?"Join us for a very imagination-stretching conversation about the potential near-future challenges, opportunities, and yes, dangers posed by Artificial Intelligence. Was this episode helpful or encouraging in some way? Great! Then you won't want to miss what's next so SUBSCRIBE now and send this episode to a friend! We appreciate it! 🙏You can also leave a review (it really helps), or follow us on Twitter, Facebook, & Instagram to join the conversation!RESOURCES(BOOK) Burn-In: The Real Robotic Revolution(WEB) Official Website(LLC) Useful Fiction(THINK TANK) New America's Cyber Citizenship Initiative

Danny Rankin, a jack-of-all-trades, discusses AI's impact on society, blurring the line between human and computer-based intelligence. He explores the relevance of AI, the challenges of creating genuine connections with synthetic relationships, the importance of trust, and the potential distortion of knowledge and wisdom by AI.

Season 2 is officially HERE. As two pastors with zero combined experience using technology more advanced than a fancy microwave, we decided it would be only natural to dedicate an entire season to ARTIFICIAL INTELLIGENCE.And by "we," we mean "Brad."John was ALSO (very) skeptical at first, so we couldn't think of a better introduction to Season 2 than to force Brad to make the case for how this quixotic idea could possibly be within the scope of "remapping culture and rethinking leadership for a liminal age." It turns out that digging into AI and all it's implications holds at least as much promise for deeper understanding of what it means to be HUMAN as it does potential for profound societal DISRUPTION.Welcome back to our Liminal Age and let the "Skynet" jokes commence!Was this episode helpful or encouraging in some way? Great! Then you won't want to miss what's next so SUBSCRIBE now and send this episode to a friend! We appreciate it! 🙏You can also leave a review (it really helps), or follow us on Twitter, Facebook, & Instagram to join the conversation!RESOURCES(NYT) A Valentine's Day Conversation with Bing's Chatbot by Kevin Roose(NYT) A Wellness Chatbot is Offline After a 'Harmful' Focus on Weight Loss (PODCAST) “The Quiet Catastrophe Brewing in Our Social Lives” with Ezra Klein 

Western culture has long celebrated the individual. But the global pandemic accelerated the pervasiveness of individualism within our long-held institutions, like churches. This has led to an incredible burden on individuals to make meaning and a deepening polarization of tribes. In other words, it’s not good.In March 2022, Brad Edwards gave a talk called “PLANTING CHURCHES THAT FUNCTION AS GREENHOUSE INSTITUTIONS” at the Spanish River Church Planting Conference. In his talk, Brad diagnoses the warning signs of individualism solidifying in our culture and churches, and offers three mindset shifts for planting churches (and growing institutions) that grow people out of individualism, rather than further solidifying them in it.RESOURCES:The Patient Ferment of the Early Church: The Improbable Rise of Christianity in the Roman Empire, by Alan KreiderPanel:Al Barth – Director of Church Planting at SRCDavid Cassidy – Lead Pastor at SRCRick Hunter – Director of City Church ProjectMoussa Intiga – Lead pastor at Christ Central Church in Soweto, South Africa

Was this episode helpful or encouraging in some way? Great! Then you won't want to miss what's next so SUBSCRIBE now and send this episode to a friend! We appreciate it! 🙏You can also leave a review (it really helps), or follow us on Twitter, Facebook, & Instagram to join the conversation!RESOURCES(BOOK) The Great Dechurching: Who’s Leaving, Why Are They Going, and What Will It Take to Bring Them Back? by Mike Graham & Jim Davis(NYT) Does the U.S. Government Want You to Believe in UFOs? by Ross Douthat

Dr. George Yancey is a sociologist and professor of sociology at Baylor University. His 2006 book, Beyond Racial Gridlock, introduced a model for race relations beyond the false dichotomy of colorblindness and anti-racism. When George Floyd's death sparked a resurgence of interest in his model, Dr. Yancey developed it even further with Beyond Racial Division: A Unifying Alternative to Colorblindness and Antiracism. His work is a robustly researched vision of race relations beautifully charts a path toward unity in a radically polarized world.Join us as Dr. Yancey walks us through what it means to reject coercion, listen well, and lead adaptively in an age eager to fight for rights and avoid responsibility!Was this episode helpful or encouraging? Great! Then you won't want to miss what's next so SUBSCRIBE now and send this episode to a friend! We appreciate it! 🙏You can also leave a review (it really helps), or follow us on Twitter, Facebook, & Instagram to join the conversation!RESOURCES(BOOK) Beyond Racial Gridlock: Embracing Mutual Responsibility(BOOK) Beyond Racial Division: A Unifying Alternative to Colorblindness and Antiracism

There are few voices on leadership with as consistent of a track record in anticipating needed shifts in our approach to leadership as Dr. Tod Bolsinger. As the author of multiple books (including one we've referenced heavily - "Canoeing the Mountains") and Associate Professor of Leadership Formation at Fuller Seminary, he brings a rare combination of academic depth and practical breadth to "rethinking leadership."Listen in as we pick his brain on everything from the need for institutions to adapt, the uselessness of "casting vision" in a liminal age, and how to know when we need "build greenhouses" or "burn our canoes" to draw new mental maps...Do you have any questions after listening to Season 1? Tell us HERE. Keep tuning in and we'll answer these in a future episode!Was this episode helpful or encouraging in some way? Great! Then you won't want to miss what's next so SUBSCRIBE now and send this episode to a friend! We appreciate it! 🙏You can also leave a review (it really helps), or follow us on Twitter, Facebook, & Instagram to join the conversation!RESOURCES(BOOK) Canoeing the Mountains, by Tod Bolsinger(BOOK) Tempered Resilience: How Leaders Are Formed in the Crucible of Change by Tod Bolsinger

If Part 2 felt heavy... good. That means you're feeling the weight of what it is leaders are called to. It's not for the faint of heart!Here's the good news: Part 3 is all about moving from surviving to thriving. It's all about giving up on being SUPER-human in order to become FULLY human. Thankfully, that's not only possible, it's promised. Was this episode helpful or encouraging in some way? Great! Then you won't want to miss what's next so SUBSCRIBE now and send this episode to a friend! We appreciate it! 🙏You can also leave a review (it really helps), or follow us on Twitter, Facebook, & Instagram to join the conversation!Resources(BOOK) Leadership on the Line, by Ronald Heifetz and Marty Linksy(PDF) Executive Summary for Leadership on the Line, at Transform Leaders (BOOK) Canoeing the Mountains, by Tod Bolsinger

Adaptive Leadership essentially means having an Institutional Mindset - seeing your role and responsibility as cultivating environments and communities where technical and adaptive growth happens. In other words, leaders build GREENHOUSES.Unfortunately, "building greenhouses" is far from safe. It requires pruning and pruning invites sabotage. According to Tod Bolsinger, "Acts of sabotage are not the bad things that evil people do to stop good being done in the world. Acts of sabotage are the human things that anxious people do because they fear they are losing what little good is left in the world." (from Tempered Resilience)So if leaders should expect change to be dangerous, how do we respond in the moment? How do we SURVIVE leadership?Was this episode helpful or encouraging in some way? Great! Then you won't want to miss what's next so SUBSCRIBE now and send this episode to a friend! We appreciate it! 🙏You can also leave a review (it really helps), or follow us on Twitter, Facebook, & Instagram to join the conversation!Resources(BOOK) Leadership on the Line, by Ronald Heifetz and Marty Linksy(PDF) Executive Summary for Leadership on the Line, at Transform Leaders(BOOK) Canoeing the Mountains, by Tod Bolsinger